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Coral Spotlight | Plate Coral

Common names: disc coral, plate coral, fungia, mushroom coral

Difficulty Level: Sensitivity will vary between fungia species, but most are fairly tolerant of most conditions. Heliofungia, characterized by its long tentacles is one of the hardest to care for. Stability in alkalinity is key as it is with most LPS corals.

Feeding: Fungia are extremely aggressive eaters with very capable tentacles. They will easily catch and consume most food types including frozen, liquid and even pellets. Take care as their feeding aggression can sometimes be taken out on neighboring corals. Food may be placed anywhere on top of the disc, and the tentacles will move it to the mouth.

Lighting (Level 2 to 8): Fungia will thrive in a wide range of lighting. As with most hard corals, bleaching is a concern, so always acclimate by starting them lower in the tank and slowly move them up to your desired location.

Water flow: Heliofungia fare better under medium to lower flow, but other species of fungia will do well under most flow conditions.

Placement: All members of the fungia family should be placed on soft sand. Even the underside of these corals is live flesh, so placement on substrate is very important. Keep in mind that they can move themselves, and should be allowed to do so. They will often find the optimum spot on their own.

General: Fungia are very capable corals and can even unbury themselves if buried